Dozens of homes are likely to have been destroyed and eight firefighters have been injured by a raging bushfire that continues to sweep through the northeastern Adelaide Hills as South Australia's worst bushfire since the 1983 Ash Wednesday blaze continues to threaten lives overnight.

There are several firefronts each one spanning kilometres in Adelaide Hills. At one stage on Saturday evening the smoke was so dense visibility was virtually nil.

The out-of-control fire is threatening the communities of Kersbrook, Gumeracha, Cudlee Creek, Inglewood, Houghton, Lobethal, Mount Torrens, Charleston, and Mt Pleasant after burning freely in all directions for most of Saturday.

In Victoria, storms brought a brief respite to firefighters battling blazes across the state, but not before a blaze at Moyston, in the state’s west, ­destroyed three homes, killed thousands of animals and burnt 4700ha of land.

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Miraculously this koala bear survived the blaze at Kersbrook Road near Adelaide

Embers glow against the smoke-filled sunset near Gumeracha in the Adelaide Hills

A shed burnt down at Kersbrook near Adelaide as the fire continues to burn out of control

Fire crew from Greenhill Country Fire Service are ready to battle the raging Adelaide bushfires

South Australian and Victoria facts...

Eight firefighters have been injured overall

More than 10,000 hectares has been already been burnt in Adelaide Hills

Seven volunteer fire fighters have been treated for smoke inhalation

Around 500 firefighters supported by 100 appliances are battling fires

The 1983 Ash Wednesday bushfires...

On Ash Wednesday in 1983, 180 bushfires broke out and within days had burnt across half a million hectares in two states

In Victoria, 47 people lost their lives, and 28 died in South Australia

Twelve volunteer fire fighters died in one incident at Beaconsfield, in Victoria

For the next quarter century, it was used as the measure for all bushfire emergencies in Australia

An emergency warning had been put out for Hastings, Bittern and Crib Point on the Mornington Peninsula, but the CFA said these fires are now under control.

Bittern evacuee Barbara Tipper said the roads were jammed as residents fled the fire.

‘It was getting pretty scary,’ she told ABC 24.

‘There's lots of smoke and we have no hope if a fire gets in here.’

About 40 dogs and cats have perished after a bushfire destroyed large parts of a boarding kennel and cattery in the Adelaide foothills.

Fire ripped through the Tea Tree Gully Boarding Kennels and Cattery on Saturday morning, burning down the cattery and a large section of the kennels.

All of the cats and about a third of the dogs at the kennels were killed.

Owner Paul Hicks says he and his wife were unable to take any of the animals with them when the fire forced them to evacuate.

The devastated couple's home was also destroyed in the blaze.

'It's really, really sad at the moment,' Mr Hicks told ABC radio.

"We're trying to come to terms with what's happened with us and think about what we do going forward.

It's my wife's passion. She loved the animals and she loved the customers.'

The Tea Tree Gully Boarding Kennels and Cattery, where dozens of pets perished during bushfires, in the Adelaide Hills

The areas in South Australia that an out of control fire is threatening to engulf on Saturday night

A Country Fire Service volunteer reacts as rain starts to fall near One Tree Hill in the Adelaide Hills

Bush fires rage out of control across the Adelaide Hills on Saturday evening

In Victoria, Moyston resident Cyd Kelly packed her loved ones - two dogs - into the car and got out of the Victorian town, as a large and uncontrolled bushfire approached.

"If the house goes, it's all just possessions," she said on Saturday while sitting outside the bushfire relief centre in Ararat.

The dogs - Frank and Ken - sat nearby, with a bucket of water, in Ararat's quiet main street.

About 20 people and their pets had arrived at the relief centre by Saturday afternoon.

Meanwhile South Australian premier Jay Weatherill has told residents in the Adelaide Hills to put their emergency evacuation plans in place and leave immediately.

'Your lives are at risk and we are asking you to implement your bushfire survival plans,' Mr Weatherill said.

'If you decide to leave you should leave immediately.

'If you have decided to stay the fire could become incredibly scary and it could make you change your mind and leave.

'It could be a catastrophic decision to leave late.'

More than 10,000 hectares has been already been burnt and at least seven volunteer fire fighters have been treated for smoke inhalation. Around 500 firefighters supported by 100 appliances and 14 aircraft are currently battling the blaze, with more personnel and trucks to arrive from New South Wales.

A caravan saved from the fire sits on charred earth near One Tree Hill in the Adelaide Hills

Adelaide Hills residents take shelter in the Golden Grove recreation centre as an out of control fire threatens lives and homes

A family evacuate their suburban Golden Grove home as bushfires spread across the area on the fringe of the Adelaide Hills

At least five homes have been destroyed but CFS spokesman Rob Sandford says it is likely that dozens of homes have been annihilated in the Adelaide Hills region in northeast Adelaide.

A band of lightning crossing Victoria on Saturday evening is also sparking more fires. Residents near Ararat in Victoria's west have been urged to leave their homes amid fears a wind change could send the fire towards them.

An emergency warning also remains in place for Sampson Flat.

The fire is expected to burn well into next week. The major concern is to get the fire under control before the hot and windy conditions which are forecast for Wednesday.

Lightning strikes are also causing further problems for fire fighters, starting several spot fires in the area.

'There should be no sense of relief because of a temperature drop or spots of rain. Warnings must be heeded to,' said Premier Weatherill.

Raging bushfires have also been burning in Victoria since Friday. By Saturday afternoon approximately 520 fires had been fought in Victoria in 30 hours.

One home was lost in Moyston at the foothills of the Grampians in western Victoria after crews contained the bushfire and downgraded an emergency fire warning to a watch and act message.

The areas in Victoria that have been have been worst affected by bushfires

A massive blaze broke out in Sampson Flat, north-east Adelaide on Friday morning

The mercury hit 39C in Adelaide as storms also began to appear on the horizon on Saturday

The fire in South Australia is travelling in an erratic manner and burning freely towards townships

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a warning for severe thunderstorm which is set to bring damaging winds, large hail and flash flooding.

Temperatures are predicted to decrease hastily, with temperatures expected to drop ten degrees in half an hour.

The Country Fire Authority's aircrafts which have been helping to fight fires have been grounded in Hastings, Victoria due to wild winds.